I've been putting some thought into the present state of Amiga, and thought about some potential solutions to problems it still faces.
First of all, I think we're in a pretty good position. We've got new hardware and more importantly, a new version of the OS - which represents the
proper migration to PPC we've been wanting for so long yet definately retaining an Amiga look and feel. This has to be good news and I think puts in an excellent foundation to build on.
Secondly, Amiga is still a well recognised and respected brand especially in the now generally monied twenty somethings (even as just a games machine).
What I belive the Amiga needs is a re-establishment of the brand. Specifically, attachment of the name "Amiga" and its traditional logo, and the production of a console-style (i.e. 500, 1200) Amiga. This is how a lot of the non-Amiga fanatics remember the Amiga.
My roadmap would be this...
Using the mini-ATX form factor AmigaOne, produce an A1200 style all-in-one unit. The specification of this machine could be 512megs RAM, 40gig HD, Radeon gfx, Soundblaster sound. One remaining PCI slot (as per the 1200's expansion slot). I would suggest a black case
Bring on board a partner or investor who's willing to bankroll production of many of these units, hopefully bringing down the prices through bulk purchase (which I imagine Eyetech cannot afford to do on their own).
Convince developers that this isn't a minor attempt at re-releasing an old brand for the benefit of a few thousand hobbyists. Convince them that is a massive and dedicated move to re-establish the Amiga as a platform.
Aim for a sub 400 pounds price mark (or whatever that is in your local currency) and package it with a few games and applications. A brightly coloured box would do nicely.
Get them into electronics companies again, eg. Dixons. Get them back on the street.
Oh yes, advertise.
Imagine this machine. It would have the ability to boot games from CD, in the same way that everyone remembers Amigas booting from floppy. In that sense it's a glorified console. With Workbench ready installed on the HD it would give people instant internet access and scope for serious work when they're
not simply whacking in the latest CD game or DVD.
This might grate a little after spending so long battling with people trying to convince them that the Amiga is not just a games machine. But that's how a lot of people remember it. They remember going into Game or whereever and seeing an Amiga section full of the latest games.
How many of you came to the Amiga because it was of the games, because your mate had one with a wad of pirated disks and you knew you could just copy his Pinball Dreams disk, but Super Mario Cart would require 30 quid? After you got board of gaming you started to try out Personal Paint on the CU Amiga
coverdisk and bang, a whole other side of the Amiga opened up.
I think this is the way forward for the Amiga. As a serious computer it's excellent but how can we convince non-Amigans it's going to be better/cheaper/more reliable than the PC - especially without industry standard programs like Word? The answer I think it targeting it as a games machine with a keyboard.
Let them then discover everything it can offer just as so many of us did.
I believe the hardware is in place to do this. I'm not talking about a massive new development programme, just bringing on board investors who will initially bankroll large scale production and the design/pressing of a standard case (part of the branding remember).
What do you think?
As a strategy it's got to be better than Stellar Dreams flogging a couple of G4 motherboards or hoping that the Chinese market is going to pay off.
THINK BIG!
